Don't Eat the Cheese After Midnight
by copagirlhb
Summary: Funny things happen when you have a late night snack!


**Poster's Message:** The mind of Lola can sometimes be a very interesting - and scary - place to be. And the Hardy Boys are owned by Simon and Schuster and the Stratemeyer Syndicate - not moi or Lola. And now, on with the show! Er... story!

 **THE STORY**

 **Chet**

Chet let out a sigh as his stomach made a grumbling sound. He was still hungry. Ever since the physical he had to take to play football at Bayport High, his mother had put him on a diet. Not that Chet blamed her. He had been putting on some weight, not doing much exercise plus eating a lot of starchy, sugary foods – which had put him in danger of becoming diabetic. Now his mother had him on a low carb diet, eating lots of leafy greens and smaller portions. No more sodas, candy, ice cream…or pizza!

Turning to check the time, Chet saw it was after midnight. He pulled back the covers and sat up in bed. Chewing his lower lip for a few moments, Chet got up and padded barefoot out of his room, down the stairs, and into the kitchen. Sitting on the counter was a bowl filled with apples. _"This would be a healthy snack,"_ thought Chet. Taking an apple, he then went to the refrigerator, where he found a small wedge of cheddar cheese; he took that and bottled water. Feeling proud of the healthy choices he made, Chet went back upstairs to his room….

The last thing Chet remembered was going downstairs to get a snack in the middle of the night. He didn't understand why he was suddenly in the hallways of Bayport High. He walked down the dark hallway wondering why it was so quiet. Just as that thought popped into his head he heard the sound of a ticking clock. Chet stopped trying to figure out where the sound was coming from as he saw no sign of a clock anywhere. That was when he realized he was still in his 'pajamas'! Well, what he wore when he went to bed: a plain white T-shirt and a pair of pajama boxers decorated with little hearts. The boxers had been a gag gift from his sister Iola.

Chet also realized that he was barefoot. He turned around to find an exit only to see nothing but the hallway, although he could have sworn there was a door there. He decided to continue going in the direction he had originally been heading. It seemed like the hallway stretched for miles.

Chet finally came to a door, and noticed the ticking clock was growing louder. He reached for the doorknob – and jumped back when the door suddenly swung open to reveal his fourth grade English teacher, Mrs. Chadwick, glaring at him.

"Late as usual, Chester! I hope you studied long and hard for this final!"

Oh, good Lord! His fourth grade English final!

 _Wait a minute_ , Chet thought, _I'm not in fourth grade anymore, and I'm a high school junior!_ He looked towards his teacher to tell her, only to find himself squeezed into a desk with a test sheet in front of him. He stared down at the paper and couldn't understand a thing it said! It looked like it was written in another language! Chet raised his hand to get Mrs. Chadwick's attention….

 **Callie**

Callie opened her eyes and gazed up at a blue sky. She sat up, finding herself in a field of daisies. As she slowly rose up off the ground, Callie stared down at the dress she wore. She had on a white cotton blouse with a brown corset laced in front, and a full, light tan skirt that just covered the toes of her black lace-up boots. Callie let out a gasp and covered the top of the shirt with her hands; the corset left her with a little more cleavage than she normally had. She blinked as she took in her unfamiliar surroundings. The sound of horse hooves caused her to turn around.

Her eyes went wide when she saw a rider on a black horse approaching. She took a few steps back as the rider drew closer, and looked on in disbelief as the rider jumped off the horse before it came to a complete stop. Callie let out squeak when the rider pulled her towards him and kissed her.

"I'm sorry I'm late, I hope you weren't waiting too long." Callie stared into a pair of dark brown eyes that gleamed with laughter. A small frown appeared. "Are you all right, dearling?"

"Wha..? Yes…yes… I'm fine."

"Did you have trouble getting away? Well, you might get into trouble…maybe I should send you back home."

Callie didn't want to leave – she knew she couldn't leave Frank. Though he looked slightly different, Callie knew this was her Frank Hardy. She rested her head on his shoulder and wrapped her arms about him, holding him tight.

"I don't want to go. I don't care if I get in trouble. We have so few precious moments together." _Sheesh, I've been reading too many romance novels!_

"Are you ready to leave tonight – are you still willing to take me as your husband?"

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Callie punctuated each yes with a kiss.

"Then I'll meet you in the barn at midnight." With one last kiss, Frank got back on his horse and rode away.

Midnight did not come soon enough for Callie. She carefully made her way out of the house, treading softly to the barn. The moon was bright, helping light her way. It was dark inside the barn; it took a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. She softly called out to Frank. Suddenly a light appeared towards the back. Callie hurried over, a smile on her face only to stop in fear.

Frank lay on the ground, his face and body covered in blood. A dark shadow stood over him. The shadow slowly turned to face Callie.

"Did you really think I was going to let you leave?"

Callie couldn't catch her breath; she was gasping for air – finally she let out a terrified scream….

 **Frank**

He let out a groan _. Not again_ , he thought. Frank knew this was a dream, but had no way of stopping it. He didn't have the dream often, for which he was very grateful, but he knew why he was having it tonight. It always showed up whenever Joe got hurt during a case. Not that his brother had been hurt badly, but it didn't matter; Joe had gotten hurt. Okay, so it was just a bump on the head, Joe didn't have a concussion – this time. This was his younger brother, after all. So he and Joe were only a year apart, it still didn't matter to Frank. He took his job as an older brother seriously. Joe had such a childish wonder about life in general, sometimes it was hard for Frank to remember that Joe was only a year younger.

Once again Frank found himself in the parking garage of Bayport Mall. He was searching for Joe. He couldn't understand how he couldn't find his brother. The garage was empty, he could hear the echoes of his footsteps. He had to find Joe and he had to find him now! Something bad was going to happen. Frank could feel it – he could feel the evil that was in the air.

"Joe! Joe where are you?" Frank heard his voice echoing around him and still no Joe.

 _Where are you Joe? Why can't I find you?_

Then he heard it: " _Frank?"_

The voice was so soft Frank wasn't sure if he really heard it.

 _"_ _Frank?"_

"JOE! I can barely hear you! Where are you?"

Then the laughter came. A low, guttural laugh that sent chills down his spine.

 _"_ _Joe, where are you?"_ The voiced mocked. _"You can't save him – you will never save him!"_

That's when Frank saw him – there was Joe, standing next their yellow sedan, the same car that had exploded, killing Iola Morton. Frank started to run, but it felt as if he were running in molasses. The faster he tried to run the farther away Joe became, till he was almost a tiny speck. Frank felt his legs burning; his heart pounded hard against his chest, his lungs yearned for air. Then it happened: the flash…the heat….

Frank fell to the ground.

 **Vanessa**

Vanessa found herself in a situation she didn't like to be in: the center of attention. She had always been the tallest girl in her class. She hated towering over the boys. She also didn't like being called "Jolly Green Giant", "Olive Oyle" or "beanstalk". Now here she was again, towering over everyone.

It was the start of a new day at school…at _another_ new school! Vanessa had been excited – she was a junior now. She was friendly and had no trouble making friends, so she had been looking forward to this day, but when she entered the school she knew things weren't going to go well.

First of all, she stood at least five inches taller than everyone else – that included the teachers! Vanessa couldn't believe it. She could feel everyone staring at her as she walked down the hall. A few stared in awe, some with fear, the majority with scorn. Vanessa never understood the reason for the scorn. She had never been mean to anyone, at least not knowingly. She thought about slumping her shoulders but was afraid they would think she was making fun of them. Instead she greeted everyone with a smile, hoping to convey that she only wanted to make friends.

"Go away, freak!"

Vanessa turned to see who had said that.

"Yeah, we don't want your kind here!" Soon a chant began. Vanessa stood still, willing herself not to cry. She refused to show them how much they were hurting her. Suddenly another voice rang out.

"Shame on you! Shame on all of you!"

Vanessa looked around but couldn't see who had spoken. The crowd began to part and a very small person walked up to Vanessa. The young girl barely came up to Vanessa's waist. The girl smiled at her.

"Don't listen to them."

Vanessa knelt down [to] so the girl wouldn't have to crane her neck.

"Thank you, you're very nice. Let's be friends."

The girl nodded and took Vanessa's hand….

 **Joe**

Joe smiled; it had been a long time since he had last been here. He walked through the field of clover. He knew she would be here. It had been so long since he saw her. It made him sad that he was starting to forget what she looked like unless he stared at a picture of her. She had been his first love – how could he forget her? Then he saw her.

Iola Morton turned and smiled. She held out her hand, silently calling out to Joe. He picked up his pace, but looked up to find that Iola had somehow gotten a little farther away. She beckoned him to hurry. Joe started to jog, only find that she had moved again. She urged him to hurry so he did. Finally he caught up to her. He reached out to take her hand…which turned to dust. Joe looked up to see Iola slowly turn to dust.

 _No, no! Please no!_ Joe felt his eyes burning with tears as he watched the dust blow away in the wind. Suddenly he felt a burning sensation at his feet. He looked down to find that he was on fire. Joe took a deep breath…

He sat up in bed panting, sweat glistening on his skin. It felt so real! Joe got out of bed and quietly went into the bathroom. Not wanting to wake Frank, he didn't turn on the light. He splashed cold water on his face, then went back to bed. He stopped at the doorway when he saw Iola sitting on his bed.

"It wasn't your fault."

Joe lowered his head. "Yes it was – if I hadn't been acting like a jerk…"

"Stop that! You may have been acting like a jerk but you didn't kill me! Those Assassins did, not you."

"Yeah but…"

"No buts… By the way, I like her. She's good for you."

Joe blushed. He had just started dating Vanessa Bender but he felt a little guilty about how he felt about her.

"You have to stop feeling guilty, Joe. I'm glad you've moved on. You need someone to love and who loves you. And she does love you."

Joe's head shot up, his surprised expression making Iola laugh. Her smile grew a little sad, and she began to fade away.

"You don't need me anymore, Joe, you have Vanessa now. I know you'll always love me, so don't feel sad anymore. You won't see me in your dreams but I'll always be with you." Then she was gone….

*cheese*cheese*cheese*

Joe woke up to find damp tearstains on his pillow. He had had that dream about Iola again… only it was a nightmare, and then it wasn't. He shook his head, thinking that was the last time he would eat a bagel with cream cheese so late at night.

Frank woke up feeling tired and grumpy. He knew he was being silly but he had to go check. He found Joe sitting on his bed.

"I'm okay, Frank; stop being such a mother hen."

"Can't help it. You're going to make me gray before my time." Frank smiled at his brother then went back to his room, thinking, _No more cheese as a late night snack.  
_

Vanessa had been spending the night at Callie's. She told her about the dream she had, and Callie told about her own strange dream.

"My mom was right," said Vanessa.

"About what?"

"Never eat string cheese late at night!"

Callie heartily agreed.

Chet woke with a start. He stared up at the ceiling, finally realizing it was all a dream – just a dream. He let out a sigh, and got out of bed, going over to the bookshelf. He picked up his laptop then returned to bed. He sat in the middle of the bed, opened his laptop and waited for it to boot up. Chet went straight to his email account and sent a letter to his pen-pal:

 _You were right, Dawn, never eat cheese late at night! You definitely have the strangest dreams._

 _Chet_

 **The End**

 **Poster's Note:** Yup, words of advice should always be followed. Hope you enjoyed another of these little short stories that Lola wrote. Thanks for reading!


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